Pointfile a.k.a Leaks

I was reading a tutorial on how to do proper lighting; which I never payed too much attention to besides the basic. So anyway as you know if you type "pointfile" in the console it will generate a number. If the number is 0 then you dont have any leaks. What it didn't cover in the tutorial is: My number was 1034; so does that mean I have 1034 leaks or is that a number telling me the cordinates of my leak?

Sushi said:
I was reading a tutorial on how to do proper lighting; which I never payed too much attention to besides the basic. So anyway as you know if you type "pointfile" in the console it will generate a number. If the number is 0 then you dont have any leaks. What it didn't cover in the tutorial is: My number was 1034; so does that mean I have 1034 leaks or is that a number telling me the cordinates of my leak?

the number is how many tiny dots it took to get from point"A" to point "B"

consider yourself lucky, most times it takes about 20,000 points to get there, and its a bitch to find the ending..

if you run out of points, (which it will state clearly you have) add this command to your command line option..

+ 50000 particles..

hope this helps

and it will show this nice whitish-grey line of dots going all over the place and ending where your leak is.

Still 1034.

 

Since I am "The Forum n00b" what do you mean from point A to point B. Yes I may be an idiot but please be patient. And I know it is already certain that I have a leak but does it mean anything that my whole indoor map is light really bright with no light entity; does that mean there are leaks in most of my map; or does the light just spread from one point?

It is basically how many points it take to get from a certain entity(the one listed) to the point where it's leaking.  To make it easier to find the leak, since you'll have to go outside the map most likely is to use gl_clear 1 in the console.  This will disable the Hall of Mirrors effect you normally get and replace it with a solid red color. 

Ok; clipping. A leak can be cuase for instance by two blocks running into each other; right?

Update: Ok I must have done something right becuase I move a wall over a bit and now "pointfile" is only 613 instead of 1034.

Ok, first off, load the map in the console, not thru the multiplayer menu.  Once the map is loaded. bring up the console again (using the funky button next the the 1)

~  <-- that one

type in pointfile 1 and then a series of dots should appear in front of you.  As well, you might need to type in noclip if the dots go thru walls.  I cant remember if they do or not.  But just follow the dots until you reach teh end, that is where your leak is.

As well, a leak will cause your level full bright, the reason for this is because when you compile your map, it will create the level's architecture, then if there are no leaks, it will create the level's lighting.  If there is a leak, it will skip the lighting (and the rest of the compile) and make your level full bright (no shadows)

Definition: Leak:  A hole in your level which allows you to see into the void (unwanted) black area.  This hole can be big or small.

I have had in my last map (Dark Complex) many leaks between cliff burshes that were not even 1 unit big.  Therefore I could not see them by just running around in the 3D view of VHE.

As well, any leak that is (I believe) smaller than 1 unit big will cause Half-Life to freeze once your level is loaded.

It end right into a solid block; which would be my floor; I would show a picture of it but geocities dowsn't allow outside access to host pictures. It goes from my info_player_start to the bottom of the floor on the outside part. I just dont know what the leak is.

My map wasn't THAT big or complex only took maybe 3 hours to make; so I guess I will start over with a new design. Thanks for your help and will be looking forward for more help soon.

Upload a bunch of screens and then give us the link to 'em.  Geocities will let you do that.  It just wont let you display the pictures on other sites.

Almost done uploading

The number you get says absolutely nothing about how good/bad/big/small/ridiculous your map leak is. No assumptions can really be made on the number itself, except for the general complexity of the map. This leak finding info is everywhere though, in fact this site has a pretty good step by step procedure on how to get rid of them.

Other than the fullbright when you have a leak thing, lighting and leaks have little to do with each other.

Tutorial

Wild Card said:
As well, any leak that is (I believe) smaller than 1 unit big will cause Half-Life to freeze once your level is loaded.

I just wanna take a second to say I have found this not to be the case. However, some mods will freeze once the leak is being rendered (NS used to do this). I recommend you do all your leak hunting in standard HL.

Cash Car Star said:

Wild Card said:
As well, any leak that is (I believe) smaller than 1 unit big will cause Half-Life to freeze once your level is loaded.

I just wanna take a second to say I have found this not to be the case. However, some mods will freeze once the leak is being rendered (NS used to do this). I recommend you do all your leak hunting in standard HL.

i concur.. the pitcrew map had an entire wall missing (about 128x128) and the map ran just fine.. of course do to it not completing the compile the r's were enormous, but the point is, the map didnt crash..

Pictures

sighs

geocities strikes again..

i suggest you contact lep for some decent storage..

Orpheus said:

Cash Car Star said:

Wild Card said:
As well, any leak that is (I believe) smaller than 1 unit big will cause Half-Life to freeze once your level is loaded.

I just wanna take a second to say I have found this not to be the case. However, some mods will freeze once the leak is being rendered (NS used to do this). I recommend you do all your leak hunting in standard HL.

i concur.. the pitcrew map had an entire wall missing (about 128x128) and the map ran just fine.. of course do to it not completing the compile the r's were enormous, but the point is, the map didnt crash..

Orph, read carfully, I said smaller than 1 unit

Is it bad that all the points are on the outise of my map; you know the part that kinda looks all blurry.

we cant look at the pictures yet, it says wait an hour.

Sushi said:
Is it bad that all the points are on the outise of my map; you know the part that kinda looks all blurry.

in console type   gl_clear 1

Wild Card said:

Orpheus said:

Cash Car Star said:

Wild Card said:
As well, any leak that is (I believe) smaller than 1 unit big will cause Half-Life to freeze once your level is loaded.

I just wanna take a second to say I have found this not to be the case. However, some mods will freeze once the leak is being rendered (NS used to do this). I recommend you do all your leak hunting in standard HL.

i concur.. the pitcrew map had an entire wall missing (about 128x128) and the map ran just fine.. of course do to it not completing the compile the r's were enormous, but the point is, the map didnt crash..

Orph, read carfully, I said smaller than 1 unit

 that makes even less  sense... sorry i read it wrong tho..

Why can't you load the .pts file into Hammer 3.5? It saves the trouble of looking around in-game. Just follow the line and where it's red, start looking for the leak.

Campaignjunkie said:
Why can't you load the .pts file into Hammer 3.5? It saves the trouble of looking around in-game. Just follow the line and where it's red, start looking for the leak.

Sorry bud, but no, just no, I've dont that a few times and when I load the pointfile, I get like 5-10 different lines going back and forth thru the map without actually pointing to a leak, and less its an obvious leak (like 64x64) or something of the sort.

VHE's leak finder was a great idea, but they didnt do a good job of implementing it :sad:

there was no red

Check to make sure the walls weren't func_walls/ doors / ect.. Also make sure that there are no lights or other entities on the outside of a map.

Really, by now you should have found the leak from the pointfile :rolleyes:

/attempt

I have looked at the pictures.

You either have a very small leak, which doesnt seem to be the case, or you have a entity in the void.  As well, brushes that separate your map from the void cannot be entities.  You cannot have a func_wall for example between you map and the void.  Check to see if that is what you have done.  If you still dont know where your leak is, I can take a look if you want me to.

Wild Card said:
  If you still dont know where your leak is, I can take a look if you want me to.

thats funny, considering you always send yours to me to find :biggrin:

 

/runs

It happended twice.  The first, cause I didnt know what pointfile was, the second, because D_C crashed when HL loaded it.